The senior guard rebounded from an off night Thursday to score a game-high 20 points, including five 3-pointers, in the Blazing Trojans' 51-46 McDipper semifinal victory over Southland Conference rival Crete-Monee in a rematch of last year's tournament final.

The effort puts No. 18 Bloom in position to defend its title Saturday night against either Marian Catholic or Seton.

"Before we came over here, (Williams) told me to take good shots and to lead the team," Freeman said. "I just came out here and let the game come to me, looking for my shot."

Freeman's 12 first-half points almost matched the Warriors' output during that span, as Bloom led 26-14 at the break. But a 16-4 Crete-Monee run to open the third quarter, combined with Mark Conner's basket with 2 minutes, 50 seconds left in the quarter gave the Warriors (11-2) a 32-30 lead.

"We were a little flat in the third quarter, but we came out in the fourth quarter and played Bloom basketball," Williams said. "We tried to finally stop their drives to the basket. Once we shut that down we were fine the rest of the game."

The Warriors' led 46-41 with 2 ½ minutes left, but Bloom (10-2) scored the final 10 points.

Freeman's long-range shooting showed in the box score, but his defense on Crete-Monee guard Marvie Keith was just as important. The two have been going toe-to-toe since middle school, and Freeman's ability to cut off Keith's driving lanes in the fourth quarter helped turn the game in the Blazing Trojans' favor.